


Hello

by Sarah Problem (SarahProblem)



Series: Come With Me [3]
Category: Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, Complete, Dysfunctional Family, Established Relationship, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-17
Updated: 2017-03-17
Packaged: 2018-10-06 10:03:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 15,503
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10332155
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SarahProblem/pseuds/Sarah%20Problem
Summary: Disaster strikes and family's involved. There's some ugly Truths. But, as always, there's Hope.





	

 Hello

by Sarah Problem

 

 

 

 

 

In the darkness of space, the tiny Romulan ship hovered easily just on the inside of the busy space lane. It floated in the wake of many of the larger ships as they came out of warp and headed toward the nearby starbase. Using very little power to move as needed, _The Wasp_ cataloged the ships as they come and went. Some of the ship were mining ships, some cargo. Others were passenger transports or private vessels, all from different species and planets.

But the one ship that kept Commander Seka's full attention, the best prize of all, was the Constitution Class Federation Starship, USS Enterprise. That was an enemy worth risking death to take.

_It would all be so easy,_ Commander Seka thought from his Command chair, enjoying the sight of the Starship that orbited Starbase 10. _To take out the Enterprise. To destroy the starbase. To lay waste the planet beneath. If only…_

Commander Seka didn't usually allow himself to daydream of the famous battles he would win some day. As a Romulan, such daydreams were considered a weakness and a waste of time. But while the Empire had his heart and soul to command, his imagination was his own. And since there was not much to do at this point, he had the time to indulge in his guilty pleasure.

_So far, the cloaking device is working well. The Ministry of Science will be glad to get our reports when we return. If I only had the weaponry…_

But he didn't. Romulan scout ships were unarmed, small, five-man crafts. If they were discovered, High Command would expect them to avoid capture at best and take their own lives at worst. They couldn't even afford to communicate with the Empire, in case someone had new technology that could sense them. This far out, on the wrong side of the Neutral Zone, they were on their own.

_When I return with new information about the Federation's communications systems and all the starbase's soft spots, then…! Then they will grant me command of a battle ship. One with the cloaking device and an armory fit for a Proctor's Battle!_

But for now it was incredibly frustrating to see such important targets in front of him and to be unable to do anything but collect data.

_When I_ _**do** return, the Enterprise may not be here, but the starbase will be. It would be worth dying to see it reduced to scrap!_

Unfortunately, fate would take Commander Seka at his word.

 

***

 

Doctor Leonard McCoy, CMO of the Starship Enterprise, sat at the end of the table in the Captain's Ready Room. The morning briefing had just broken up, and Spock, Scotty, Chekov, Uhura, and the other team leaders filed out of the room. McCoy found himself waiting to be alone with the Captain.

_For being in such a foul mood this morning, Jim's hiding it well._

For the last few days, they both had been looking forward to the stop at Starbase 10. They'd get to resupply basic foodstuffs, the crew would get a bit of shore leave, McCoy would get to attend some of the lectures at the Scientific and Medical conference that was being hosted there, and Jim could shuttle down to the planet-side base and see if there was anything there worth exploring. But this morning, after checking his PADD while McCoy had his shower, Jim's attitude had changed.

_"I'm staying on-board for the duration, Bones," Jim had said grimly. "I've got a lot of work to do. I don't want to get behind."_

_"What? Something come up?" McCoy asked he checked himself out in the 'fresher's small mirror._

_Jim had just shrugged._

_"We're still meeting for lunch on the station, right?"_

_"No. Sorry," Jim said shortly as he got up from their double-sided desk and headed for the door. "I'm going to be busy, so I'm eating here. See you at the morning's briefing."_

Usually, they walked to the Ready Room together. But McCoy had seen by the set of Jim's shoulders that he wasn't going to wait for company. McCoy wondered at first if he'd said or done something wrong. But they'd been living together for almost six months now, and there had been nothing unusual about this morning. Jim had slept well, awoken up as his usual groggy self, and eaten heartily while getting ready for the Alpha shift.

McCoy figured it must have been something in the early morning reports, and if Jim wanted to share with him, he would. He tried not to take it personally. There were things that Jim, as a Captain, had to know that he couldn’t share with McCoy. Just as there were things about McCoy's job, especially when it concerned patient/client privilege, that McCoy couldn't discuss with Jim unless it was something a Captain had to know.

It wasn't until the last few minutes of the meeting that McCoy had looked at his own itinerary for the next few days, and he saw it.

_That's probably the problem,_ McCoy thought as the last of the crew left the room. _Don't know why it didn't pop out at me the first time around. I should have thought of that when I found out we'd be in spitting distance of Deneva._

After the door slid shut, leaving just the two of them. McCoy got up and walked over to sit down beside Jim. Jim was still typing on his PADD and McCoy knew when he was being politely ignored. But this was a subject they needed to discuss.

"Don't know why I missed it," McCoy said gently. "Mr. G. Samuel Kirk and his lecture on _'The Denevian Sulfur-Microbe and its Implications on Bio-filtering'_  was one of the lectures I was going to attend. That's your brother, isn't it?"

Jim's jaw tightened and he hit the PADD even harder as he typed. "It's possible."

"Yeah. Not too many Kirks out here, I suppose," McCoy said, studying Jim closely. "Even fewer named Sam, who live on Deneva with their wife and son. And I'll bet hardly any of them are Research Biologists."

Jim stopped typing, but he didn't look at McCoy. "All right. It's him."

"And you don't want to run into him."

Jim didn't look at McCoy. "Something like that. I also _don't_ want to talk about it," He snapped.

McCoy must have acted startled at the vehemence in the demand. Jim sighed and seemed to catch himself. He then reached out a hand to gently take McCoy's wrist. "Please."

_He's damned serious about this. Whatever it is between him and Sam, it's bad._

He knew that there'd been no real contact between Jim and his older brother in years. Probably coming up on a decade now, if not more. McCoy knew that Winona dropped news about Sam and his family when talking to Jim once in a while. At least, in those conversations McCoy had overheard. And just as fast as Winona had mentioned Sam or his family Jim had changed the subject.

_I wonder if that goes both ways. Does Sam actually listen if Winona has news of Jim? Has either one of them ever tried to make contact?_

Sam was someone that McCoy only knew from snippets of Winona's conversations. Otherwise, he'd never have realized Jim had a sibling. It had confused McCoy at first, since Winona called her eldest son ' _George_ ' while Jim called him ' _Sam_ '. McCoy had done some early research at the Academy's library, since McCoy had just been a kid when the Kelvin was destroyed and didn't remember much about it. Jim, being a baby, wasn't so much the focus of the newspaper and tabloid articles McCoy had found as was Winona and six-year-old George Samuel Kirk Junior. McCoy had felt sorry for the whole family. He remembered thinking that both Winona and George had looked haunted.

"Okay," McCoy said, turning his hand to grip Jim's and squeezing it. "Lines drawn. I can work with that. But I do think I need to go to —"

"Don't be stupid," Jim interrupted, returning McCoy's squeeze with one of his own and then letting his hand go. He looked tired. " _Of course_ you should go. He's doing important work. You may need that information someday. Could save the crew."

"Yeah," McCoy admitted, "I was thinking it was something I should look into. Jim, if I need to ask him some questions or—"

"Then do it." Jim tried to smile, but McCoy could see he really wasn't feeling it. "I _don't care_ if you talk to him, Bones. Just don't… expect me to want to hear about it. Okay?"

"Sure," McCoy said quickly. He shrugged. "If that's what you want."

Jim nodded. "It is. And you'd better get going if you're going to get all those lectures in." Jim's next smile was a true one. "Just don't fall asleep during them like I would. I don't want my crew making me look bad."

"Hey, I've got my own reputation to worry about, thanks," McCoy said with a smile as he stood and gathered his PADD. "I can sleep with my eyes open, so no problem there. And, hey, look, if you get some free time leave me a message on my comm. We can still do dinner somewhere on the Promenade." He gave Jim a chiding look. "It is a _big_ base, you know."

"I'll see," Jim said with a nod that wasn't all that sincere. "But I really do have things I need to do and I'd like to catch a quick session in the gym, later."

"Do that," McCoy said, slapping Jim on the shoulder as he walked to the door and turned. "Burn some of that negative energy off. Doctor's orders."

Jim stood, his smile sunny. "Maybe I need to save some energy for later, when we both get to call it a day? I've been reading about some positions that are supposed to be physically impossible, and I'd like to prove otherwise."

McCoy groaned and rolled his eyes. "Damn it, Jim! Don't _even_ get me started or I'll be wondering about that all day rather than paying attention to the lectures. And _quit_ reading porn without me. It's unnerving."

The door opened on Jim's chuckle and McCoy made his escape while he could.

 

***

 

McCoy sat on a high row in the lecture hall, trying to look like he was just watching, not staring. The lecture this hour, his third in a row, was on "The Denevian Sulfur-Microbe and its Implications on Bio-filtering," and presented by none other than Mr. G. Samuel Kirk.

_Must look like Winona's side of the family,_ McCoy thought when the tall, blond man had taken the podium and started his presentation. He introduced himself as 'Samuel Kirk'. _Doesn't look all that much like Jim, unless you look for it. Similar coloring with the hair, eyes are a darker blue, though. They have the same forehead and cheekbones, but the eyes, nose, and lips are different. And I guess he's chosen not to use "George". Avoiding his father's name would save him a lot of unwanted attention._

McCoy had seen holos of Jim's mother but hadn't actually met her. Jim didn't display family pictures, and McCoy knew that Jim didn't like to talk about his family or his past. Oh, Jim had called Winona on and off from the Academy, but he usually came out of the discussion sullen and moody. But he _did_ call. All McCoy knew of Jim's older brother, 'Sam' for short, was that he was a research biologist that lived on Deneva, had a wife and kid, and he and Jim never spoke.

_Another bit of Jim's childhood I don't know anything about. The kid sure keeps his past under wraps. Not that he doesn't have a ton of stories he likes to tell, but none of them ever have any family in them. Something went on between these two. I can't help wonder what it was._

"And that, gentlefolk," Samuel Kirk began his ending summary, "is why I believe that the Synshon microbes of Deneva deserve more study and _definitely_ more funding. The advances we could make in the field of viral control and containment could be vastly important as we continued to colonize new frontiers." And with that, he turned off the projected  holo he'd been using. A few clapped and the lecture hall filled with movement and noise as the crowd got up and chatted excitedly among themselves.

_So, do I go up and introduce myself? There are some questions I'd like to ask. I know Jim said he didn't care, but I know he does. It probably won't matter. I doubt Winona's been talking about me much, no matter what Jim thinks. He probably won't know who the hell I am. And I really do want to know more about his work._

Decision made, McCoy waited until most of the crowd had left, leaving half a dozen to stand around hoping to see if they could get in a word with Kirk before they had to go.

When his turn came, McCoy smiled and held out his hand. "I'm Doctor Leonard McCoy, CMO of the starship Enterprise."

The welcoming smile that had been on Samuel Kirk's face froze, leaving him looking a bit startled. Samuel Kirk shook his hand. "Doctor. How may I help you?"

_Okay, something there surprised him. Of course he knows that Jim's Captain of the Enterprise. I'm sure Winona's mentioned that at least once._

"I was interested in the way the microbes act as natural bio-filters for several strains of the xenonoses class of virus," McCoy said. "I've come across a few cases of Andorian shingles in my time, and find it worrisome that the virus seems to be mutating into something more invasive. I was wondering if you've tried its filtering features on something more specific to that class?"

Samuel Kirk's dark blue eyes lit up. "I've been interested in testing the microbes in a more focused way, but haven't chosen a path to take at the moment. As you can see, my research is still very general."

"So, you think there could be some progress to be made in that area?"

"Oh, yes. I think there's a good possibility that that area of research could yield some interesting results."

"Good. I'd like to keep tabs on any advancements you make in that area," McCoy said.

Samuel smiled. "My contact information is included in the presentation metadata that all the attendees can download. Please feel free to contact me at any time."

He reached out to shake Kirk's hand again. "I don’t want to keep you from your plans, Mr. Kirk. But I look forward to reading more about your research."

Samuel's face changed then, and he looked at McCoy curiously as they shook hands. "May I ask _you_ a question? You… work closely with the Captain of the Enterprise, is that right?"

McCoy smiled. "Yes, I do. Very closely." _In more ways than one._

"Then you know who I am?"

_Busted._

"Jim's brother, yes," McCoy replied.

"Jim?" Samuel just nodded his head, as if realizing that he and the captain must be friends if McCoy was at liberty to use his first name. Samuel's eyes went sharp. "Did he send you here to see me?"

"No, he didn't," McCoy said, feeling a little surprised by the question. "I'm a Doctor, not a spy."

"So you are," Samuel said apologetically, holding up his hands. "I didn't mean anything by it. I was just wondering…" But Samuel's voice trailed off. He looked uncertain.

McCoy gave Samuel a minute, unable to pull himself away. _This may come back to bite me in the ass, but what can I say? When it comes to Jim, I always want to butt in. And Jim_ said _he didn't care. I can throw that back at him if he gets upset._

"I was wondering how he's doing," Samuel said quietly, looking embarrassed that he'd said anything.

"Fine. I think the Captain's doing fine," McCoy said, now feeling awkward himself.

"It's just… well, I'm here with my son, Peter. It's his first off-planet trip. He's in with the starbase's Standard School while I'm at the presentations, and the kids are all excited about the Enterprise stopping here. I'm meeting Peter for lunch, and just wondered… Do you have his com number?" Samuel looked embarrassed. "I'm not sure how to contact the ship and get ahold of him. We don’t travel in the same circles, it seems, and I didn't realize he'd be in the area until we arrived."

"Uhm…" McCoy stalled for a minute, trying to decide how to handle this.

_Okay, this is where that ass biting comes back on me!_ McCoy thought furiously. _I know Jim didn't want anything to do with Samuel, but his own nephew? Has he even ever met the kid? Does he want to, even with Samuel there? What the hell do I say?_

"Tell you what," McCoy said after finally deciding what to do. "This room's free for a while, right? Why don't you wait outside, and give me a few minutes alone? I'll see if I can get ahold of him and see if he has any time." McCoy tried to make his smile casual. "No promises though. His time's pretty much spoken for on stops like this. Hazard of the job."

_And if Jim says no, then I'll lie my ass off and tell the guy that the Captain's too busy. So no hurt feelings._

Samuel nodded and gathered his things. "I'll be outside. Peter won't expect me to pick him up from school for another half hour or so."

As soon as Samuel Kirk had left him alone, McCoy pulled his communicator off of his belt, looking at it with dread.

_God, I hate family things. I suck at this stuff. But better get it over with._

He opened it up and heard the tell-tale chirp of activation, wondering what he was going to say to Jim.

 

***

 

Seka, the Romulan Commander of _The Wasp_ , had considered the test of the new cloaking device a success. But as claxons suddenly went off all around him, and time seemed to slow to a crawl, he could only stare with horror at the flashing screen in front of him.

It took him a precious fraction of a second to realize that he had made two fatal mistakes.

The first was that he had been criminally negligent in letting his small ship stray too far into a well-used shipping lane, where ships came and went from warp constantly. Some of which were small, but many of whom were very large and moving very, very fast.

The second mistake was in not realizing that if a ship were invisible to all vision and sensors, then any automatic ship navigation and fail-safe systems would fail to detect him as well. Especially when coming out of warp.

In the slowness of his perceived time-flow, Commander Seka had one last moment to calculate the odds of his small ship surviving the impact that was to come. It was clear that his fantasies of galactic conquest were not to be.

And, unfairly, the commander and crew of The Triptaker, a mining ship fully loaded and heavy with birythium, would never know what happened.

 

***

 

Jim Kirk, in a soft gray t-shirt, blue shorts and his favorite black running shoes, was closing on his third kilometer on the treadmill in the upper deck gym. Since it was one of the few gyms with viewports, all the equipment faced them. It was the one place on the ship he could stare out at the view and not worry about being bothered by anyone, even if the gym was busy. Gym time was considered personal time unless you brought someone with you, or arranged to meet with an exercise buddy. And today Jim was glad that he had come on his own.

He'd been in a foul mood for most of the morning and knew it. Running in the low light at the far end of the room, he could pretend that he was running into the nothingness that was right outside the ship. He respected space, but didn't fear it. He found it calming.

_I should have said something to Bones sooner. Before we'd left for the morning's briefing. The guy lives with me. He's my doctor for heaven's sake. Of course he was going to notice something was wrong._

He hadn't realized that he'd gotten so tense once he'd seen that his brother was going to be on the starbase, or that McCoy had signed up to attend his presentation. Not until McCoy had mentioned it and Jim had wanted to snap at him for even _thinking_ of going.

_Bones is going to say I should have talked to him about it ages ago. Explain to him about why I don't want to run into Sam. Why I don't like thinking about him, let alone talk to or about him. And maybe I should have. Bones may not understand, but he'd care._

Jim didn't like to think of himself as a coward. But there were just some parts of his past that still felt like an open wound. It hurt in a way he didn't want to look at too closely.

So it felt good to run. Even if it felt as if he was running away from something, rather than to something. He could feel the tension working its way through him, and by the time he was done he knew he'd feel more in control of his emotions.

And the view helped. The Enterprise couldn't dock with the starbase so they were far enough away that the large, orbiting station filled one side of the port, with the planet bright and red behind it. Even now that they were on the day side of the planet, the lights from the various viewports blinked and winked like stars in the shade.

_She may not be the newest starbase, or the prettiest, but she's a workhorse. Gotta give her that._

Then, just as he noticed he was working up to the start of his fourth kilometer, the intercom near him chirped. Jim sighed and put the treadmill on its slow-down-stop mode and hopped off. The intercom was just at the edge of the viewport, and Jim could at least still watch the coming and going of the ships for a few minutes more.

_Sometimes I wish the computer_ couldn't _find me. I might actually meet my goal more often._

He punched the button. "Kirk here."

"Captain," Uhura said. "Dr. McCoy is requesting a private channel. He says it's not urgent, if you're busy."

"Put him through. Private channel." And Jim found a bit of the tension coming back and he tried to shove it aside.

"Hey, Jim?"

"Yeah, Bones. What's up?"

"Well, I met your brother, and he was wondering how to get ahold of you. He's here with Peter, and… well… the kid's excited that the Enterprise is here. Your brother was wondering if you'd be able to meet them for lunch in a bit."

_Damn it, Bones! I told you…_ Jim took a breath and tried to fight back his anger. "Did you tell him anything?"

"No. I told Samuel you might be too busy. He doesn't know how to contact you otherwise."

_How old is Peter now? Seven? Eight? And I've never even met the kid. I_ know _I should. I just don't know…"_

Jim must have taken a moment too long because he heard McCoy sigh.

"Look, Jim, I know what you said. I didn't want to put you on the spot, but I didn't want to make that decision for you. I can –"

There was a flash outside, in the distance, framed by the darkness of space. Every hair on Jim's body stood up as he saw sparkles and lightening-like flashes that outlined a dark mass that seemed to grow.

He immediately punched the intercom, cutting McCoy off. "Kirk to Bridge! Deflectors up! Incoming!"

The red alert sirens came on before Kirk had even finished yelling. Kirk was already on his way to the bridge.

It was one of the longest lift rides he'd ever taken. When he practically pushed his way through the doors he found the bridge was running on full steam. If anyone else heard the "Captain on the bridge!" they didn't pause to show it.

"Captain, we've got incoming," Spock said in a loud voice, tight with control, as he punched orders into his terminal. "A freighter has exploded coming out of warp and we have 57 seconds until the larger part will impact the starbase. Their shields won't survive the hit."

"Sulu, get us up and away from the starbase and to the side of the main mass. Checkov fix our tractor beam on the largest part. Uhura, warn the base to lock down if they haven't already."

Both men took immediate action.

"Warning already sent and acknowledged Captain," Uhura reported.

"The mass is too large," Spock warned. "We cannot stop it. We don’t have the power or the time."

"We won't have to. Checkov, grab it with the tractor beam and swing it out and away from the starbase. See if you can miss the land base as well. Sulu give him every bit of power we have."

_If we can just swing it enough, even a tiny change in course, it'll just miss and most will burn up in the atmosphere. The land base should be just under the starbase's shadow. Missing one should miss the other as well. At worse… it's fewer casualties._

Jim sat and gripped the sides of his chair as the Enterprise went from standby to full power as it came around the side of the largest piece of the mining ship and its projectile-like load. The mangled bit of ship was almost a fourth of the size of the starbase itself. The ship struggled and groaned as Sulu and Chekov, who was mumbling math problems and figuring trajectories in his head, frantically worked the tractor beam. Sulu fought to give Chekov the power he needed. The ship lurched several times.

"Captain, we're being hit by debris," Spock reported. "Shields holding."

At the corner of the bridge's viewport, which was filled with the mangled mess of the mining ship and its cargo, Jim could see Starbase 10 subtly start to glow red as they raised their shields.

_At least they have those up! If we can get the biggest chunk of debris to miss it, then they have a chance of surviving the rest coming their way._

If it'd been a newer starbase, Jim thought they'd have a good chance. But he didn't know the last time the defenses of Starbase 10 had been updated. Or how well they'd been maintained.

_This stuff is coming in hot and fast. I'm not sure they're set up for that kind of a hit._

The seconds seemed to tick by slowly. The panels around him showed that the Enterprise was able to use the debris' own speed along with their tractor beam to create enough centrifugal force to alter its trajectory. With a Russian curse, Chekov hit a button and released their beam. Like a ball swung at the end of a string, the wreckage curved artfully away from the starbase on its way to the planet

No one stopped to celebrate, as bits and pieces of the ship few by in a cloud of metal and mineral particles. Some the size of their shuttles. And like an opening shot across a pool table, various ships around them were now being flung around as they were hit. Some had the time and ability to move out of the way. A few even got in a few shots of their own as they tried to burn up or break up large pieces. But most had been caught off guard, with only skeleton crews and no notice at all.

"Take out as much of the debris as you can!" Jim ordered Sulu, who was trying to vaporize the bigger targets.

"The station has taken a hit," Spock reported sharply. "Two of its shield projectors are gone."

Jim watched as speckles of debris and two small craft were shoved into the now unprotected space around the starbase, crashing into its side. Metal ripped and caved in, opening parts of the starbase up to the outside. Other debris quickly followed, peppering the once pristine hull with dents and holes. Precious atmosphere escaped in frosty plumes as the warm and humid air hit nothing but vacuum. Anything loose in those locations would be sucked out. Including people.

He hit the intercom. "Kirk to Engineering!"

"Scotty here!"

"Scotty, the starbase has been breached, they're venting! Scan for anyone ejected into space and transport them up. The thirty-second rule!" Jim yelled, reminding Scotty that someone could survive without a suit in the vacuum of space for about thirty seconds. "Get all the shuttles manned and ready for rescue and evacuations."

"Aye, Sir!"

_It only took three minutes! Maybe not even that. So much destruction,_ Jim thought angrily, as the rest of the debris swept past them and into a short and fiery freefall into the planet's surface. _What the hell happened out there?_

"Uhura, inform Starfleet. Put out an emergency 'All Hands' broadcast. The Ahwahnee and Merrimac should still be fairly close. Sulu! You and Chekov start tracking these civilian ships. See if any need immediate help. If they're dead in the water, arrange to beam aboard the crew and scuttle then to the surface if they're in the way or will hit the starbase. Inform everyone flying we may need their help with emergency evacuations; I don't care who the hell they are."

A chorus of "Aye, Sir!" sang from those around him.

He turned to Spock. "Assess the damage to the starbase. Will we need a total evacuation?"

Spock nodded and set to work.

"Prentsky," Jim said to the young Yeoman, who seemed too stunned to move. "As soon as possible, contact all department heads. I want a complete list of all Enterprise personnel who were on the starbase, or en route by transporter or shuttle. Then give that list to Lieutenant Uhura, so she can start contacting them."

"Yes, Sir," Prentsky replied as he headed to an empty station.

And of all the hundreds of details Jim was trying to take in and manage, there were three things that he had to keep pushing to the back of his mind to deal with later.

Was Bones okay? Were Sam and Peter?

 

***

 

McCoy sighed and closed his com. _Well, I've never been hung up on before. He must really be pissed. I'll just have to make some excuse._

Outside the lecture hall, Samuel was waiting. His smile unsure.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Kirk, but it looks like something's come up." McCoy held up his com to show that he'd tried.

Samuel only nodded, and both men started down the busy hallway, toward the promenade. "I suspected as much. I know he's busy, and –"

At that moment, the starbase alarms went up. A booming voice came across hidden speakers as people looked around in shock and surprise.

"Take cover in emergency bunkers! This is not a drill! Take cover in emergency bunkers!"

"What?" Samuel asked, looking around wildly.

McCoy took Samuel's arm as he looked around and tried to get situated. _The emergency bunkers are toward the center. I just need to find the access signs. We can just follow the crew and any locals. They'll know._

McCoy pulled at Samuel to follow him and the swiftly moving crowd but was brought up short when Samuel shook off his hand.

"Peter! I have to get to Peter!"

McCoy wasn't sure how far away the starbase's school and nursery was, but he knew one thing. "He'll be safe! The schools _are_ emergency bunkers!"

"Then _that's_ where I’m going." Samuel turned and started pushing his way in the opposite direction.

McCoy followed. "You don’t know what's going on! You may not have enough time!"

Samuel ignored him, and as soon as the crowd thinned and he was able to run through the corridor, he did. McCoy was not far behind.

_What the hell am I doing?_ McCoy thought as he raced to keep up with the frantic man. _Are_ all _Kirk's my responsibility? Stupid question. Of course they are when they're related to Jim._

They had just rounded a corner, the halls almost empty, when his world was violently wrenched to one side and McCoy found himself thrown backwards. He was blinded by a bright flash and pain before things went black.

 

***

 

McCoy woke up to pain, darkness, and the feeling of warm blood running into his eyes and down his face. The pain was widespread and varied. He was lying on his side, and the back of his head hurt, his right arm felt broken and he felt like he had been dragged face down across a carpet of broken glass. _What happened to the hallway? Has the starbase been hit? Are we under attack? 'Cause if we are, then I want my pound of flesh back out of their hides!_

He blinked and tried to wipe the blood from his eyes. In the distance there was some light, but the hallway had caved in, and it was now more of a tunnel. He was at the tail end of it, as the corridor had completely collapsed behind him. He reached for his comm and realized it was gone. _Must have been blown away in the explosion. At least I have my emergency medkit. If I can see well enough to use it._

He heard a cough and suddenly remembered. _Samuel Kirk! Hell, I hope that's him._

"Hey, Kirk!" McCoy yelled, then choked on something in the air. McCoy used his left hand to unlatch his medkit. "You there?"

"Here," came the weak reply.

"How bad you hurt?"

"Uhm… just stunned. I think," Samuel replied. "And you?"

"Been worse. But I think my arm's broken." McCoy waved the small scanner over his arm, then rubbed his face on his sleeves to be able to see it better. He had a simple fracture of the right humerus, and one hell of a bruise around it. "Yeah, it's broken."

He waved it over the rest of his body. It told him of abrasions, bruises, and cuts, but no concussion. _Thank God. I need to snap out of this and think clearly._ Pulling his arm over to his side, he tried to sit up. It hurt, but he did it. He thought he could make out Samuel's form further down the tunnel. "Listen," McCoy said, "whatever the hell is going on out there, we're too damn close to the outer hull. We need to get to a shelter before something breaks open and we end up getting sucked out."

McCoy saw the Samuel-shaped shadow move. Then he groaned again. "I have to get to Peter!"

_Like I didn't know he was going to say that. God help me. Not that I can blame him. Or stop him._

"Fine." McCoy coughed and spat grit into the shadows next to him. He was starting to get nauseous from the pain. "Since the kid's probably a lot safer than we are, let's do that. But first…" Fumbling around with his left hand, hardly able to see, he gave himself what he thought was, hoped was, the mildest setting of an analgesic he carried. He just wanted to take the edge off so he could move without vomiting. He felt around in the wreckage, but there wasn't anything he could use to splint his arm, and the small regenerator he carried would take too long to deal with bone. So he gingerly removed his left arm from his blue uniform over-tunic, pulled the left side up around his neck, then pulled up the loosened right shoulder up the same way. That gave him a loose pocket of material to settle his right elbow into. Pulling the fabric around it, he had a loose but serviceable sling. Even so, it was going to hurt like a bitch when he moved.

Just as he finished, he realized that Samuel had crawled toward him.

"Let me help," Samuel said. McCoy could barely see his face, but his voice was concerned and sincere.

McCoy could hear metal hitting metal through the surrounding walls, and the sound of pings as something in the structure around them reached a stress point.

_Whatever's going on, it's still going. And we'd better be moving, soon._

"I can't tell, can we stand? Because I know I'm not going to be able to crawl very well."

Samuel pushed himself up, a hand above him to test the height. McCoy could tell the tall man was hunched over, but he could walk. "Yeah."

"Do you have any kind of light on you?" McCoy asked. "A com?"

Samuel didn’t answer for half a second, then started fishing around in his pockets. "I forgot!" He pulled something out and flipped it open. It was a civilian com. "I can com Peter!"

McCoy wasn't holding his breath as he pushed himself up. He was right, it hurt like hell. By the light of the small screen, McCoy could see Samuel frantically working with it.

"No signal," McCoy stated gruffly.

"No!" Samuel said, sounding and looking a bit panicked.

"Relays are probably down all over the starbase. I could contact the ship with mine, but that and my PADD are somewhere under all the debris. We can use yours as a flashlight as it has more light than anything I've got on me. We've got to get out of here and away from the hull area. Now."

"But I can't tell which way we were going," Samuel said.

"Well, there's only one direction we can go, and it should be the right one. I was behind you, so turn around and go back _that_ way."

Samuel came up beside him, took his left arm, and with both of them hunched down under the low ceiling they used the light from Samuel's com to see their feet. They picked their way as quickly as they could toward the light at the end of the tunnel.

_This whole side wall collapsed in. That must be the hull side, and the hit came one or two decks up. I don’t know how far we're in, but there must be some structure between us, or we'd be leaking air._

They passed a door on the inward side, but McCoy couldn't see any identifying marks on it. They kept going. Just before they got to the end, the starbase shuddered again, and a huge bang rang like a gong through their small space. They staggered, and McCoy tried not to yell as he hit his broken arm on something. The light at the end of the tunnel disappeared as the ship shook and the debris around them shifted.

There was now no light but from the com, and McCoy could feel the chill as a wind whispered past his ears, headed to where the light used to be.

_Damn it! Now there's nowhere to go! Wait. Yes, there is!_

"There's a breach!" He yelled, pulling at Samuel. "Back this way, before we lose all our air!"

They hurried back the way they'd come, then lunged for the door McCoy had seen before. Finding the seam of the door panels, McCoy tried to pull them apart, but with one arm it wasn't going to work. "Sam, grab something and pry these open!" McCoy felt around him, unable see anything as Samuel used his com to look around the other side of their trap. All McCoy could feel was large areas of twisted metal.

"I found something," Samuel exclaimed. McCoy couldn't see what it was, other than a twisted length of metal. Samuel shoved the end into the seam, and worked at prying the panels apart. McCoy bit his tongue against the pain in his arm, feeling the flow of air increase. _We don't get in there, we won't be breathing soon. The starbase will seal this section off, if it's not sealed off already._

There was another smattering of pops and dings from somewhere outside. Whether it was Samuel or the shifting debris, McCoy didn't know or care as the doors hissed open and they both tumbled inside. Samuel turned and forced the doors shut and McCoy felt relief when he heard them 'snick' closed.

_Sounds air tight. I hope._

He didn't feel any air flow toward the door, but he didn't feel any airflow at all. Nothing in or out.

Samuel then reached for the locking panel next to the door. The only light in the room, the panel glowed red when he activated it.

"Well, at least something works. Must be on auxiliary power. And we can stand up straight," McCoy muttered looking around. "What is this place? A storage room?"

Samuel waved his comm around, the light showed the walls covered in shelves that were filled with numbered bins, and each bin filled with bits and pieces of electronic components. There were a few machines that McCoy recognized as cleaning machines and a couple of stacks of carpeting squares and some cushion replacements for the chairs in the lecture halls. A lower shelf held some sealed chemicals.

"Maintenance," Samuel said. "And no other way out." On the opposite side of the door was a view panel and computer controls, but all were dark and unresponsive as Samuel tapped on them. "All dead."

McCoy sighed, the pain in his arm making him woozy. "These doors will be programmed to seal shut if there's a vacuum on the other side, so we probably won't be trying to open it again. We might as well wait to be rescued."

Samuel waved the comm over McCoy. While he did so, McCoy got a better look at Samuel. He looked just as dirty, cut up and frazzled as McCoy felt.

"You look too pale," Samuel said taking McCoy's left arm gently. "Might as well get you comfortable."

They walked to the back of the room, and as McCoy struggled to sit without jarring his arm too much, Samuel got some of the carpeting squares and seat cushions and made them both backrests on the floor. Leaning back against the wall, with the soft materials at his back, McCoy found he could finally relax a bit. Samuel sat next to him, putting the com between them so they could see each other in the faint light.

_He's not relaxing. I don't blame him. His kid's out there, and he needs to be with him. He looks resolved, not frantic. That's a good sign. He could have just up and left me in the debris, as freaked out as he is. Bonus points for that._

There was a few quiet moment between them. McCoy didn't know what to say to the guy. He knew he was too sarcastic and truthful by nature to be too comforting. He didn't want to get the man's hopes up about his kid.

"So," McCoy began after clearing his throat. "I wonder how big this room—"

"About a thousand square feet," Samuel said instantly. "And it's not the oxygen that we have to worry about, it's the CO2 build up."

"Yeah, that I know all about," McCoy said grimly. "Especially on ships."

"This size of room… we've got about three good hours until it starts to get really unpleasant," Samuel said with an apologetic smile. "I know you're a doctor. I just always figure these things out. Biological Research kind of pushes me that way."

"Uh, huh. Gotcha," McCoy said with a smile. "Kinda like doctors. The more we talk about things, the more we freak out the laymen. Jim sometimes had to tell me to shut up or I'd scare the plebes." He chuckled. "Of course, sometimes that was the _point_. No use being older than my whole Academy class if I couldn't harass them in some way. For their own good, of course."

McCoy heard the surprise in Samuel's voice. "You went to the Academy with Jim?"

_So Winona must not have mentioned me much. That's okay. I don't know her at all, either._

"Sure did. Met him on the way in. Sat next to him on the shuttle. We both looked like shit, especially compared to all the other incoming cadets in their pristine Reds." McCoy chuckled tiredly at the memory. "Threw up on his shoes. Best friends ever since."

Samuel looked a bit surprised. "So, I guess you know him pretty well, then."

_Okay. How much do I tell him?_ _He'll find out someday, somehow._

"Yeah. I'm kinda living with him."

Samuel's eyes got wide. "You mean… romantically?"

"Yeah. You know, the whole committed relationship thing," McCoy admitted. "We didn't start out that way. Not for years. It just kind of happened over the last year or so."

"Oh." Samuel shook his head. "I just thought… Well, Mom talks about him a lot, and I just figured him more as a lady's man."

_But she's not talked about me at all, huh? Okay, good to know._ Only it kind of hurt. He'd heard Jim talk to his mom about him, and how they were together now. _Maybe I should have gotten a clue in the fact that she's never asked to talk to me. Heck, my dad hates to talk on sub-space, but_ he's _talked to Jim. Asks about him. Even though they've never actually met._

"He's been that too," McCoy admitted. "Me as well. I was even married to a woman once, which is how I ended up throwing up on Jim in the shuttle. Not _because_ I was married, but because I suddenly wasn't, if that makes any sense."

_No, of course it doesn't. I either gave myself too much analgesic or not enough. This arm is killing me._

Samuel looked at him strangely, when suddenly there was a loud 'whump' sound, and the starbase shook again. Samuel got up and ran to the door, placing a hand on it.

"Cold," he said grimly. "But holding."

"Lost all air in the corridor, vented out to space. Probably sucked all the dust and crap out too. If the door had any weakness in it, we'd have known by now."

Samuel walked back to him and squatted down. He was tense as he looked at McCoy, his arms folded across his chest. "How can you be so calm? I feel like I want to freak out and dig my way out with my bare hands."

"That's perfectly normal," McCoy said kindly. "It's what you actually _do_ that matters. I'm freaking out inside, but there comes a point where you've done everything you can do. You just have to chill and wait it out. That's what we're doing now. Trust me, I've been in a _lot_ of ugly situations. I trust Jim and I trust the crew of the Enterprise. They'll get us out of here as soon as they can."

"If they're still out there," Samuel looked scared at the thought.

"They're out there." McCoy nodded reaching up to pat Samuel on the shoulder. "Jim's a _genius_ at this stuff. He's got a brilliant First Officer, although never tell anyone I said that. And some of the best people in Starfleet work on that ship. He's still out there and you can bet he's working every single second to save every life possible. And that includes us _and_ your son."

Samuel sighed and sat. "You're _that_ sure."

"I bet my life on it every single assignment. Every single day. I live and work in a _tin can_ , out in the scariest part of space. Because he wants me there and I trust him to do the best damn job he can to keep all of us safe. I couldn't be any surer of him than that." McCoy smiled. "Not that I'm biased because I'm sleeping with him or anything."

Samuel smiled. "Of course not. I just can't stop worrying about Peter. He was so excited to come with me, to a real, live starbase. I _don't_ want him in space. But if I forbid it he'll flock to it." Samuel put his head in his hands. His voice sad. "All that being in space has ever done for my family is tear us apart. I don't want that for him."

They were both silent for a moment.

_I might as well ask. Even if it gets my ass kicked._

"Samuel?"

"Call me Sam."

"Sam, I know this is personal and all that. And, frankly, it's something Jim's never, ever wanted to talk to me about so you can tell me to go to hell, but... what happened between you two?"

Samuel didn't answer for a few minutes, looking lost in thought in the darkness of their temporary prison.

"I'm still trying to figure that out myself," Samuel answered softly.

"Then," McCoy said with an evil smile, "let me cheer you up with some stories of James T. Kirk and his adventures at the Academy. All _true_ , although I can't actually swear to it in court. I was totally complicit in most of it and I don't _have_ to incriminate myself there."

Samuel smiled shyly. "Thank you. I'd like that."

 

***

 

Jim fidgeted in his chair, tugging at the Command colored tunic he'd found time to put on. As the Captain, he'd set everything in motion that he could to address the situation. And now, as the Captain, he had to stay out of everyone's way. Once he'd had a chance to change, he did. He'd gotten something to drink, but wasn't hungry, although he knew he should probably have something while he could. There was no use even considering a quick nap. All he could do was wait for the next event to start, to end, to be reported or updated, or to go wrong and to be there to handle it. The urge to follow behind his crew and micro-manage was making him twitchy. But he suppressed it as much as he could.

He'd hated Captains who didn't let their people work, although he'd quickly learned about the overwhelming urge to keep moving. He'd promised himself he wouldn't be that way with his own people even if it did make him feel like he was going crazy.

_At least it's going as well as can be expected. Any of the ships that haven't been helping have been staying out of the way. We've beamed aboard a couple of people out of space itself, and they may actually survive. We've helped the starbase to shut down and seal off some of the areas that are dangerous. And beamed those who were already in MedBay, the nursery and the school kids down to the surface. We've got three other Starships on the way, one with an Admiral coming to assess the damage and oversee the beginning of the repair process. Of the six thousand plus on board Starbase 10, only 78 confirmed dead so far. Hopefully, there won't be many more than that by the time we get a chance to sort through the damaged areas by hand._

And it would, literally, have to be searched by hand. The birythium rock embedded in the damaged areas was making scanning impossible. There was a large area around the visible damage that the best sensors on the Enterprise couldn't see through. There could still be a lot of people, dead or alive, in that section. The count of the missing and dead from the starbase was still unknown. No one on the station had had time to count heads or take rolls.

But the Enterprise had. Prentsky's report on missing crewman had shown that thirty-two had been on Starbase 10 at the time of the wreckage impact. Twenty-one had reported in as alive and well, and were assisting with rescue and repair attempts. Eight were injured, beamed aboard, taken straight to the MedBay and were even now being evaluated. Three were unaccounted for.

McCoy was one of them. He still had not checked in, either to the ship or to the starbase's MedBay or nursery. Not from the planet, either. No one had reported him anywhere at all. And if McCoy wasn't in the thick of things, doing his best to save lives, then there was only one place he could be.

And as Spock would say, since it was the last place they _could_ look, it was only logical that their missing crew members would most probably be in the area of the three main impact sites. Near the lecture halls. Where Bones would have been this morning. Where Jim's brother would have been giving his lecture. And with the way Uhura had touched his shoulder as she hurried by, busy with the massive amount of communication that needed coordinating, he knew that she and Spock had come to the same conclusion.

Just as he got up to pace around the bridge once more, he saw Scotty at the lift. The man looked wrecked and unsure of himself, as if he wouldn't be welcome on the busy bridge. Feeling trepidation tighten his muscles and shake up his gut, Jim walked up to him. Scotty didn't meet Jim's eyes as he turned around and re-entered the lift.

Jim knew it was going to be very bad. He followed Scotty inside and locked the lift in place. The doors shut, giving them privacy.

"Tell me, Scotty," Jim said tightly.

"It may mean nae' a thing," Scotty said quickly. "And I shouldn't be here and doin' this. But I can't _not_ do it." He held out a communicator. Jim took it. It was beaten all to hell and smelled like ashes. "It's McCoy's. I pinged it to see if we could get a fix on him at the impact site. It still works well enough to signal back."

"So, you could beam it out from the damage site? You know where he could be?"

"Jim," Scotty said softly. "It wasn't _in_ the starbase. It was out in space. I caught it just before it could enter orbit and…"

_Burn up,_ Jim thought numbly. _Like Bones' body could have, if he'd been sucked outside and hit something large enough to knock him from orbit. Like a ship, or more debris. Like some of the starbase's missing people might have been. Only they haven't officially gone missing yet._

Jim felt his eyes welling, and he gripped the comm hard in his hand.

"I'm sorry. I should nae' have—"

"Yes, you should have," Jim said, taking a deep breath to get himself under control.

"I've done you no favors," Scotty said miserably.

"The truth isn't a favor, Scotty," Jim tried to smile at him, but failed. "Buddha himself said that, 'The gift of truth excels all other gifts'."

"It doesn't feel like it," Scotty insisted.

"No, it doesn't," Jim agreed. "But, thank you anyway."

Jim unlocked the lift and returned to the bridge. The communicator still gripped tightly in his hand.

_There's always hope, until the last second. I'll hold on to that last second for as long as I can._

***

 

McCoy tried not to laugh very hard. It hurt his arm and aggravated the CO2 headache. By the time display on Samuel's com, they'd been in the room for about four hours. Between the two of them, the carbon dioxide had started to build up in the room. In another hour or so their respiratory rate would increase slightly, the room would feel even hotter and more humid, they'd get fuzzy headed, and even wearier. They'd last for about fifteen hours, all together, but they wouldn't enjoy it.

"I can't believe he got away with that," Samuel said with a slight smile. McCoy could see from his squint that he was feeling the headache as well. "He could be a charmer, as a kid. When he felt like it. But the rest I can believe."

"He's gotten to be a really good diplomat," McCoy said rubbing at the dried blood and grit that covered his cheek. "He has to be. There were more than a couple of Academy graduates that were jealous of his test scores. They thought he'd coasted in on your dad's name. They didn't want to believe he'd _earned_ those genius ratings. And some of the brass don't like him. They can make him follow orders, and be respectful, but they can't make him kiss their ass. They push him too far with any kind of crap, and he'll walk. Now, they all pretend to work well together, so it ends up being true in the end. And they've seen the results he gets. That's hard to argue against."

"Is he happy?" Samuel asked.

"Mostly," McCoy said. "He has his bad moments, like everyone else. I try to make him happy. He tries to make me happy. And I think we're doing okay."

Just then, Samuel's comm beeped.

"It's got a signal!" Samuel said excitedly. "We can call and tell them to come and get us!"

"Hell with that," McCoy said with a smile. "Tell them to patch us up to the Enterprise. They can beam our asses out of here! And we'll get you and Peter together just as quickly."

Samuel really smiled this time, and started to make the connection.

 

***

 

"Captain!" Uhura turned in her chair and locked eyes with Jim. She smiled at him and Jim's flicker of hope bloomed. "There's a Samuel Kirk and Dr. McCoy requesting beam out from the damaged area!"

"Yes!" Jim jumped out of his chair and hit the intercom on the armrest. "Scotty! We have a comm signal from inside the damaged area of the starbase. Can you home in on it and beam out two survivors?"

"I'll not know until I can see the signal, Captain," Scotty said excitedly. "I'm on my way to the main transporter room."

"Meet you there," Jim said excitedly. "Uhura, can you transfer the signal to my comm? So we can talk to them?"

"Yes, Captain."

Jim ran to his ready room, where he kept the comm when he was on the bridge. He grabbed it and flipped it open as he headed back to the lift. "Bones?"

"Jim?"

The voice wasn't McCoy's.

"Sam?" he asked.

"Is Peter okay? He was at the school."

"Sam, all the kids were beamed down to the planet. He's safe. He's with the teachers and the other kids. He's okay."

"Oh… thank god," Sam gasped, sounding close to tears. "Thank you, Captain! Thank you."

"Sam? Can I speak to Dr. McCoy?"

"Jim?"

Jim smiled at hearing McCoy's voice. "Are you and Sam okay? What happened?"

"My arm's busted and my regenerator's a piece of crap. I look like shit, but I'm all in one piece. Sam's as scroungy as I am, but nothing a shower and some antiseptic won't fix. But we've been in this sealed room long enough that the CO2 is getting bad, Jim. Why haven't you beamed us up yet?"

Jim turned to the console, where Scotty was tapping the screen like crazy. Scotty looked at Jim and shrugged. "The comm's signal is being picked up from behind the room, and then bounced to us. It's not a straight signal to them and it's not stopped by the birythium like everythin' else. We can't get a transporter read from just the comm signal."

"What if we come up on the other side of the station? Then try to get a lock on them from the back? Come in from the other side of the birythium?"

Scotty shook his head. "Sorry, Captain. I thought of that hours ago. The disturbance the birythium causes covers that whole area of damage. It's like the birythium is always in the center of a bubble of interference. No comin' up from behind."

"Okay," Jim thought for a moment, but he couldn't think of anything else they could try. "Look, Bones, we can't get even a peek at you. But give us your location and we'll see about coming in to get you the hard way. The rescue teams are working their way through that area. They can't be too far away."

"Oh, just peachy," McCoy grumbled. "I promised the man a beam up and a starship ride, Jim. Don't make a liar out of me."

"Don’t worry," Jim said with a smile. "The second you two are clear, we're yanking you out. I promise."

"Well… if you _promise_."

"Now, tell us _exactly_ where you are."

McCoy and Samuel described the location, so they were able to relay it to the rescue team. When Jim was told that it would take the team at least forty-five minutes to cut their way through various metal walls and come in from behind, Jim knew how to spend the wait time.

Down on Decima, the planet that Starbase 10 orbited, there was no indigenous life and no current plans to terraform the planet. There was no water anywhere, and few minerals, just a lot of wind formed rock dust. What life there was on the planet was housed in several large buildings, and dozens of even larger storage facilities. Mostly underground, and mostly meant to be used by the starbase for extra supply storage. It also made the Federation a bit of money as they rented out protected storage space for various companies passing through who needed to drop their goods for pick up. And there was plenty of place for smaller ships that could land to do so. When it came to figuring out exactly what had happened in the shipping lane, the investigators would probably use most of the huge storage rooms to collect bits of the ship that had exploded for further analysis.

Jim wasn't going to miss anything special by having himself beamed directly into the larger housing complex, a 3.2 kilometer square building. It was where the kids, the newly homeless, and the walking wounded had been evacuated. Jim stepped away from the transporter platform and asked the attendant where the school kids were being housed. She pointed to the far side of the complex. The facility was a large, open space studded with support beams, and Jim had to make his way through and around various groups that were busy handling their own situations. At the far end, some partitions had been put up, and Jim headed for that.

As he came to the opening of the partitioned space, he waited until an adult came up to him. Jim scanned the large group of kids of various ages that were being kept busy with projects. He gave the man his request, the man took Jim's thumb print on his PADD, checked some data, then walked to a group of kids in the corner. He knelt and talked to a red-headed boy, who looked across the room and nodded. The man took the child's hand and walked him to the entrance.

Jim knelt down to look at the child on his level. He'd seen the baby holos, but hadn't had one in a while and the kid had grown. Peter was about one and one-third meters tall, dark red hair, and had his father's blue eyes, his great-grandfather William's ears, and his grandfather George Kirk's strong chin. The kid was smiling.

_I guess the rest is from Aurelan's side of the family,_ Jim thought. Winona had sent holos of Sam's wife, but Jim had never met her either. _I guess that's something I_ should _know._

"Hey, Peter," Jim said kindly, but a little hesitantly. "Do you know who I am?"

"Yeah, you're Uncle Jim," Peter said happily. "Dad's brother! He's showed me your holos. You're Captain of the Enterprise!"

"Yes, I am. Do you want to come with me and beam up to the Enterprise? Your dad will be there in a while. We can surprise him."

"Sure!" Peter exclaimed eagerly, rocking excitedly, his eyes wide. "Can I see the bridge?"

Jim nodded. "Later, after we get your dad cleaned up, I think I can make some time for a grand tour."

"That'd be so great!"

Jim stood, smiled, and held out his hand. "Let's go have a family reunion, kid. I think we're long overdue."

After tucking Peter into MedBay on the Enterprise, Jim just had enough time to get to the transporter room with Dr. M'Benga and the med team for McCoy and Sam's beam up. Jim had to admit that when they both finally formed on the transporter pad, that it was McCoy who'd looked the worse for wear. But Sam looked more shell-shocked. M'Benga started toward the platform, but McCoy waved him away. Jim took that as proof that neither was in such bad shape that they needed the emergency team.

"Captain—" Sam began.

"He's in MedBay, waiting for you," Jim smiled tightly at his brother while joining McCoy on the platform. "Follow Dr. M'Benga. He'll get you cleaned up before Peter sees you."

As Dr. M'Benga led Sam away, Jim folded McCoy into a careful half-hug. McCoy's hair was standing on end, he was covered in dirt and dust, and small trickles of dried blood, he'd turned his uniform shirt into a sling, and he smelled like he needed a long, hot shower. But Jim didn't care.

"Hey, Kid. Missed you down there. Had a wonderful time," McCoy said into his ear, his scratchy voice happy behind the sarcasm. "Learned a lot. Made a new friend. Let's not do it _ever_ again."

Jim chuckled, gently disengaging himself. "Let's not."

Just then McCoy's eyes widened. He grunted and pushed Jim away. But not far enough, because he still hit Jim's shoes when he vomited.

Jim just sighed and rubbed McCoy's back as he tried to pull himself together. "We've _got_ stop meeting like this, Old Man. I'll run out of shoes."

 

***

 

Jim stood at the viewport, looking out into the darkness of space. The small lounge was on the space side of the ship, so there was no starbase or planet to look at. Just the stars and the movement of lights on some distant ships that were on their way somewhere else. He had a glass of good gin in his hand, and an open bottle on the table. Sam sat on the couch with his, staring at it silently. Jim had locked the room so they wouldn't be interrupted. McCoy was asleep in their quarters, Peter was asleep in a guest room. It had been a very, very long day, and Jim hadn't quite decided if this was a good idea. To be alone in a room with his brother. To be so tired and with a drink in his hand. He wasn't in any mood to be nice, or agreeable, or even diplomatic. He was angry, like he was always angry when it came to Sam.

_But I suggested it and he agreed. I'm tired, and he's had it worse. If this is a bad idea, it's not all my fault._

Neither of them had said anything once the pleasantries had been observed.

_At least he can't say I wasn't a good host. And I owe him for taking care of Bones. And I promised Bones I'd try._

He kept running that scene in his head, of tucking McCoy into bed after his fracture was healed, his cuts and bruises attended to, his oxygen and hydration levels back to normal. When Jim had finally gotten him to eat some soup and made sure McCoy was comfortable enough to sleep, McCoy had said, _I like him, Jim. I want to keep him._

_But, do I?_ Jim wondered. He took another sip of his drink.

Sam cleared his throat. "I'm sorry," he said quietly.

"For what?" Jim asked tightly.

"It took me a long time to realize that I'd been a totally shitty brother to you. I'm _sorry_ for that."

Anger welled through Jim, and he felt brittle with it. "Yes, you were a totally shitty brother. Do you want me to say you're forgiven? Because it wouldn’t be true."

"No. I know it wouldn't be true. I haven't forgiven myself. I couldn't expect to get it from you." Samuel sighed. "You have a right to be angry."

Jim turned sharply, anger making him shake, and feeling as stable as a supernova. "You mean, for abandoning me? For being the only person in the universe that I _thought_ loved me, that I _thought_ cared, that walked _away_? For never talking to me, never checking up on me? _Never_ Fucking Coming Back to TAKE ME WITH YOU!" Jim threw his glass across the room, wishing it had been real glass and could shatter. He wanted to hurt something, just like he had hurt for a long time.

Then, as fast as the anger had crept up on him, it ebbed. Just a bit.

"Yes. For that and everything else I should have done, but didn't," Samuel said softly. His eyes were shiny. His face tortured. "I'm a screwed up coward, Jim. I failed you. And I failed Dad. He would have wanted me to take care of you. And I couldn't do it."

"Why?!" Jim yelled needing to move, so he started pacing. But his eyes never left Sam. "Why did you leave? Why didn't you… why didn't ANYONE… take me AWAY from Frank! You KNEW he resented us! You KNEW what he was like when Mom was away! And you were never THERE. For ME. EVER!"

Samuel sighed again, he set his drink down on the table and rubbed at his face. "It's taken me a long time to figure things out, Jim. If you're willing to hear it."

_Am I?_ Jim wondered. He felt a tiny bit better, now that he'd let some of his anger out. But did he want to hear Sam's sorry excuses or just beat the crap out of him? He knew what _he_ wanted to do. But he also remembered what Bones had asked of him. " _Hear him out. If he gives you the truth, give him yours. Then see what's left."_

Then he remembered what he'd told Scotty. _The gift of truth excels all other gifts._ _Scotty's right, it does sound like a load of crap. But… maybe it's really true. Maybe if we give each other our Truths, we can either make up or let each other go. One or the other and be done with it. Then I can really_ not _care anymore, and not just pretend that I don't._

"All right," Jim said through gritted teeth. "Have your say. I'll listen. This once."

Samuel leaned forward, elbows on knees, and nodded. "Thank you. First, let me say that I can understand a _small_ part of what you feel. For most of my life, I felt that _my_ father abandoned _me_."

Jim stopped and stared at him. Samuel looked like he'd meant every word.

"I was six years old when Dad died. And while you never knew him, I did and I _adored_ him, as only a young boy can. Mom was… is… not a real people person. You know that. She makes all the expected moves of a parent. Says all the expected things. But never more than what she thinks she's supposed to. Honestly, I don’t know if she ever really loved either of us, Jim. She told me once, when she was angry, that she didn't. I believed her at the time. I'm not sure I'd believe her now if she said she did."

Samuel looked at Jim as if he expected Jim to defend her. _But I can't. He's right. She plays Mother, but she doesn't really care_ that _much. Not enough to really talk to me or have protected me. Not enough for me to feel like we're both just not going through the motions._

"Mom didn't really want kids, Jim. She's told me that many times. But she loved Dad more than anything, and he wanted a family. So, she had me and named me after Dad, against his wishes." Sam smiled sadly. "I never did feel like a George, anyway. Nana Williams pretty much raised me after I was about one and a half. Mom's only happy on a ship and Dad wanted to go back to space after their plant-side assignment. Nana told me that Mom and Dad had a few fights over whether one of them should stay on Earth with me. Nana stepped in to raise me while both Mom and Dad went back out."

Sam took a moment, then picked up his drink for another sip. "I didn't see either of them very often. Sometimes not even together, even though they'd gotten assigned together because of Starfleet's marriage clause. Mostly I remember Dad… when he was home it felt like he was all mine. I knew, without a doubt, that he loved me. I lived to see him come through that door or off that transport pad. And I cried when he left. Later, I realized that Dad was the magnet that kept the whole family together. He had an energy that filled the room and drew attention but didn't demand it. When he looked at you, he _saw_ you. Mom, Nana Williams, Grandpa  T.K., aunts, uncles, cousins… everyone knew George Samuel Kirk. Everyone loved him."

Sam paused.

Jim didn't say anything. _You had that. You had that time. I NEVER did._

Sam smiled, but his eyes were still shiny. "You're a lot like him, Jim. I've talked to some of your crew. You've inherited the best parts of George Kirk. His personality, his brilliance, his bravery… the way he could love people for who they really are... I think I've always known that and have been jealous of it." Then Sam grew serious again. "The last time I saw him, Mom had just found out she was pregnant with you. They'd get a six-month tour of duty on the Kelvin, they'd come back a month before you were due and take a three-year planet-side assignment. It'd be the longest they'd have stayed on Earth at one time. Mom was happy. Dad was _ecstatic_. I was five and a brother or sister sounded like fun. But mainly I was excited to be with Dad for a long time. So, Nana and I waited and filled out the days until Mom and Dad would come home, like Dad _promised_."

Sam wiped at his eyes. "He _promised_ me all kinds of things, about what we'd do together, about where we'd go. About taking long trips on his motorcycle. So I waited. And then the Kelvin was destroyed." Sam sighed. "I didn't even realize anything had happened. I'd turned six, and no one just tells a kid those things. The next thing I knew was that Mom was home with a baby and she mostly stayed in her room and cried. Nana cried too and I was scared. When I finally asked where Dad was, Nana had to tell me. Mom was on a lot of anti-depressants and having therapy at the time. She was angry and depressed any time the drugs wore off. I didn't really understand at first how my Dad could be dead. I didn't really understand what death was. I felt, for a long time, like he'd just walked off and left me. Left all of us. I was just a kid."

Jim felt stunned. _I've always thought of him as being older, rather than just a kid who missed his parents. I guess I had a hard time seeing him as just a child. He was younger than Peter. He's barely been an adult longer than I have._

"Time passed and you were always sick. Premie-space sickness they called it. From the radiation, which I guess was pretty bad after the explosion of the ship. I don't remember what the official term for it was. Mom tried to deal with it, with Nana's help. I remember overhearing once that you'd gotten pneumonia and were in the hospital again. Your immune system was fucked up. They didn't expect you to make it. But you were always a tough little guy. So I spent more time at Nana's than at Mom's. Mom had her hands full with you. Mom didn't really set up house for the three of us until you were about two. Even when Mom got us our own place, I still got left at Nana's a lot. Then when I was eleven, and you were about five, Nana died of a heart attack in her sleep."

"I remember that," Jim said, going back to look out of the viewport. "I barely remember her. I remember you and Mom crying and being so sad and angry. And the funeral. You're right," Jim admitted. "Five… six… it's too young to really understand it. I remember being confused about her death. Why didn't she just wake up?"

Sam's voice was rough. "I found her. I think that was the first time I really saw death for what it was. The first time I realized that Dad hadn't just left me. He'd been taken away against his wishes. It wasn't until later, when I got more access to the internet and through the school system that I got around the blocks Mom had set up, that I read about the Kelvin. Then I realize that Dad had _chosen_ his death. And the kid part of my brain went back to being mad at him for choosing to die rather than to come back to me. The rest you know."

Sam finished his drink and reached for the bottle. Jim strode over and got to it first. He poured Sam some more.

"Thanks." Sam nodded. "Mom dated and was gone a lot. We were with paid sitters. A lot. Then she met and married Frank. Just as soon as we settled in with him Mom was back into space. She'd worked hard to get the psychological approval to go back out and work. It's where she really wanted to be all along. Frank was… Frank. He lived off of Dad's fame by marrying his widow. Pretended to work while Mom sent him money. Pretended to give a shit about both of us. I was… tired. Confused. Angry at Dad, Mom, Nana and Frank. You were always rebelling. Against anything. Everything. You had the brains and the drive to keep moving in a world that just wanted to stand still. And you resented Starfleet for taking Mom away from us. For killing Dad before you could even meet him. I didn't know how to deal with you. I felt like I was supposed to be your father figure. So I fought for you against Frank. But I kept losing. I'd lost Dad, I'd lost Mom, I'd lost Nana, and I didn't even really bond with you all that much. You reminded me of him. You reminded everyone of him. And it hurt."

Sam set his glass down on the table. "So, when I was seventeen, Frank and I got into it one last time. I packed my things up and left. I knew you wanted to go with me, but I wasn't strong enough to take you. When I got to grandpa T.K's place… well, Tiberius' place was the only place I could think of to go. But there really wasn't room for me there. Old T.K. let me stay anyway." Sam laughed humorlessly. "He was a sweet old guy, but also sick by then. I spent a lot of time caring for him, in between trying to get my classes finished on-line. He had a tiny place. He slept in his room, I slept on the couch. Even though she knew where I was, Mom never sent for me. Frank sure as hell didn't. Two years later I'd finished my High School degree, T.K. had just died, and I took my inheritance from him and left for Deneva. They were so desperate for settlers at the time that they funded my education and set up my research grants once I'd gotten my degrees. I met Aurelan at college."

Sam smiled a bit at the memory. Jim had seen pictures of the smiling, brown-haired, blue-eyed woman. She'd looked nice, like someone a person would be glad to know. "I married her and we went back to Deneva after we got our degrees. She introduced me to her family and they accepted me immediately. It was strange, suddenly having a lot of people around that I was related to. People I didn't have to prove myself to. We had Peter. I talk to Mom once in a while, but she's never even asked me why I left Frank's house that day," Sam said wetly as he picked his drink back up. "She barely asks about Peter. Peter's only seen her twice."

Sam swirled the liquid in his glass. He wiped at a tear. "It was all I could do to take care of myself, Jim. Even in the best of times, I never felt like I was safe. Everyone I love dies on me. And I just didn't want to deal with the past and all the mistakes I'd made. I officially started to use Samuel as my name as soon as I left Earth. George Kirk was someone else. Someone I'd failed. Like I failed you."

Jim got another glass from the recycler, then filled it. He sat down on the small chair next to the couch. They were both silent for a few minutes.

_Six years. Six years difference between us isn't a lot. Both of us had been too young to have any say in our situation. Or have any choice, or power, over those who could choose for us. I had to meet Pike to even get interested in Starfleet. It took meeting Bones to teach me what a real friend was. What_ real _love is. And now, I can look back at Dad's situation and agree with what he did. He made the right choice. And I'd do exactly the same, to save my crew's lives. It's taken me a lot of years to get to this point. How can I fault him for taking a lot of time to come to terms with it himself?_

Something seemed to drain from Jim. Most of it felt like anger. Some of it felt like resentment. It wasn't all gone, but a lot of it was.

"I thought you didn't _want_ me with you," Jim said quietly, eyes on the glass in his hand. "I was always afraid it was _me_ people didn't like. Didn't want."

"It was _never_ about not _wanting_ you, Jim," Sam insisted. "Everything just felt so fucked up after Dad died. I just wasn't dealing with it well. I didn't know how to be the big brother I should have been."

"I think, sometimes, Mom blames me," Jim admitted.

"That's bullshit, even if she does," Sam snorted. "Mom has never really dealt with that whole situation, no matter how much therapy she's had. She probably always will have some sort of problem with it. But the fact is that Dad would have made the _same_ decisions even if Mom had been on Earth still pregnant with you. She just happened to be there, with him. He saved his crew. He _meant_ to save his crew. Even knowing what he was giving up, his crew's lives were worth it. And I _know_ that Dad would have _loved_ the shit out of you. I _know_ he would. He was _so_ excited to have another kid. He had so many plans for all of us. And you…" 

Sam smiled shyly. "He would have been so damn _proud_ of you, Jim. I'll swear on anything you want if it'll help you believe that. That man had endless love for his family and friends. He was special, and I think that's why his death has been so hard for everyone to move on from. And, in the end, you were the one hurt most of all."

Sam sighed and leaned back on the couch, looking weary but relaxed. "If I could go back and do things differently, Jim, I absolutely would. But by the time Aurelan helped me get my head on straight and see the past for what it really was, you were already in the Academy. About to be famous and about to save billions of lives. I've had a hard time believing you had any reason to give a shit about me anymore. But I…I want you to know them both, Jim. Aurelan and Peter. They're my _family_ , and I want you to feel that way about them too. Even if you have nothing left for me anymore."

_Do I have anything left? God, I'm so tired. I think I do, but I don't really know him, do I? Maybe I_ should _get to know him better. Having more family outside of Bones, the crew, and Mom, would be really nice._

Jim rubbed his face, his eyes. He fought tears that threatened to fall. When he could finally talk, his voice was thick. "Sam… I'd _love_ that. Really I would."

"Good," Sam's shy smile grew. "Because Aurelan's pregnant again. She's due in six months."

Jim was surprised, in a very good way. "That's great, Sam! Congratulations! Boy or girl?"

"Won't know until then," Sam said with a laugh. "Kirk family tradition, I guess. Maybe you could come and visit? We could talk more. Without Mom as a go-between, I mean. And you could bring McCoy with you. He's… something else." Sam chuckled.

Jim joined him. It made him feel heady. "Yeah, he is."

"You love him?" Sam asked sincerely. "It's serious? This isn't just a shack-up thing between you two, is it?"

"Oh, it's _real_ ," Jim admitted with a grin. "It's the most serious relationship I've ever had. We're both working hard to make sure it works."

"I'm glad," Sam said, looking like he meant it. "He told me a lot of stories about you at the Academy, to pass the time and to try to keep my mind from freaking out about Peter. Some of them were pretty wild, but you always came out on top. I think he was trying to show me I could trust you. I know _he_ never doubted for a moment that you were coming for him, and would be there in the nick of time."

"He was a dear friend before he became a great partner," Jim said, then shook his head. "I was damned lucky, finding him like I did."

"I know the feeling," Sam said. "Aurelan's been my best friend since we met. Becoming a couple only made it better. Having Peter… well, I've been lucky that my father-in-law helps me with that. Victor's a great guy. Aurelan's got seven brothers and sisters. He knows a few things about raising kids. He makes me look like I know what I’m doing."

Sam looked at Jim, growing serious again. "Do you think we _can_ start over as brothers? Do it right from now on?"

_Do I want that? **Yes**! _ Jim was surprised at the strength of his own reaction. _Maybe I'm ready to let the past go as well._ _I know how short life is. Walking away now… I'd regret that before I even got through the door._

Sam must have read his expression because he held out his hand. "Hello," he said softly. "I'm Sam Kirk."

Jim set down his drink, smiled at Sam and took his hand in a firm grip. "Back at ya'. I'm Jim Kirk."

Sam laughed, and for a moment Jim thought he saw his father in Sam's eyes.

 

***

 

An hour later, Jim slipped quietly into his quarters. The lights were still low in the living area, and the bedroom dark.

_Good. He's still asleep._

Which is what Jim wanted to be. He and Sam had made a good start on getting to know each other. They'd laughed and cried together, and had toasted their father's memory. And if Bones didn't give him one of his guaranteed hangover cures in the morning, Jim was going to have a good headache. But McCoy would take care of him. Always.

Jim slipped McCoy's ruined communicator off of his belt and laid it on the coffee table. Then went and took a shower. He was quick and quiet, as he didn't want to wake McCoy up. Then he retrieved the comm and padded quietly into the bedroom. He touched the button on the storage drawers embedded in the wall, opening the lowest one. It was _his_ drawer, where he kept his _treasures_. McCoy knew about it. It wasn't a secret, and he was free to look inside at any time. McCoy actually had, once, when they were packing for Risa. McCoy had just looked at all the strange little bits Jim had saved and turned to look at Jim, raising a questioning eyebrow. Jim had just shrugged and went on packing. McCoy never asked about them. Jim was saving those stories for later. McCoy would just have to wait for the right times.

He carefully placed the worthless piece of Starfleet equipment into the drawer, next the other items.

_Truth. It can be brilliant. It can be devastating. But it's vital when it comes to the important things in life,_ Jim thought. _But **hope** … Hope is the best. No matter what the universe tries to make you believe, hang on to the **hope**._

He smiled to himself. There were a lot of bad memories he could let go of now, bit by bit. Because he had a hell of a lot of hope for the future. And that was a great thing.

Then, very carefully, he slid between the covers, next to McCoy. He didn't want to wake him, even though he did want to hold him. But the man needed the rest.

Apparently, it didn't matter how quiet or careful Jim was. McCoy shifted and snuffled and rolled over to wrap himself around Jim anyway.

Jim snickered. He'd _hoped_ McCoy would do that.

 

***

 

On Decima, the various crews were working to arrange pieces of wreckage on the floor of one of the larger warehouses. Some parts were from the surface. Some had been pried off of or out of Starbase 10. Some had been plucked from space by tractor beams and carried down to the surface. The pieces were from various ships, but most were from the mining vessel, The Triptaker. It had been a large ship, full of birythium, on its way across the galaxy. That had been easy to discover. There were plenty of records of the ship's travels and its intended stop at Starbase 10 to restock on provisions. All nice and tidy in the records and only taking a matter of seconds to pull up by anyone interested who had the clearance.

Whatever had happened to the mining ship had been neither nice, nor tidy. But most of its pieces would go outside. They wouldn't tell anyone anything. Mining ships weren't very interesting or complicated.

There was, though, some interesting stuff that some of the workers took note of. The combination of metals was a bit unusual. The welding and joints a bit odd. No markings, if there had been any, had survived the burn through Decima's atmosphere. But it was a puzzle for later, so the odd pieces were just sorted together. There was just too much left to do to puzzle over it.

But a small group of men, in black, walked along the wreckage. Not touching or scanning or taking holos. Just looking. They stopped in front of a mangled piece of metal in the odd pile, the size of an old style filing cabinet. Then one of them did use a scanner. An unusually small one, which meant it was a specialized tool. It was only meant to measure one thing, but that one thing must have been very delicate or very faint. When he was done he walked away, and the men that had followed him went into action. They commandeered an anti-grav truck, hooked up the piece of metal and took it outside with them. The other crews barely noticed, as everyone was busy with their own portion of the mess.

None of them would know that soon, inside a coffin tagged with the information of a man killed on Starbase 10, a Romulan cloaking device would make its way to Earth.

 

 

 


End file.
